November 9, 2020

Last Friday ended mixed but concluded a week of strong gains on Wall Street.  On the day, the Dow and S&P 500 dropped 66.80 and 1.01 points, or -0.24% and -0.03%, respectively.  The NASDAQ gained 4.33% or +0.04%.  It was a very different story on the week.  With all 11 sectors up for the week, the S&P 500 gained 7.3% with technology leading the way by gaining 9.7% and health care up 8.2%.  The Dow gained 6.9% while the NASDAQ gained 9%.

Big news this morning from biotech companies Pfizer and Germany-based BioNTech showing up to 90% effectiveness for a COVID-19 vaccine.  On the announcement, global equity markets rallied with Dow futures up more than 1,700 points in the pre-market.  The Dow components showing some of the biggest gains are those in travel-related companies – airlines, cruise lines and travel websites.

In early trading, the Dow and S&P 500 have hit all-time highs.  The NASDAQ while posting a solid gain, is trailing the Dow and S&P 500 on daily gains.  The biggest winner in the first 30 minutes of trading is the Russell 2000, an index of small-cap stocks.  Noteworthy, small caps have lagged larger cap stocks for the last few years are now showing significant signs of life.

While not yet official, Vice President Joe Biden has surpassed the electoral college vote threshold of 270 votes to secure the victory.  The Trump administration has filed up to five lawsuits aimed at states where computer programs are reported to have hit a “glitch” and may not have posted votes correctly.